I Don't Agree to the Terms
Chapter 548 - 300: All Seas Bow Before Him, Tributes Come from All Directions

Chapter 548: Chapter 300: All Seas Bow Before Him, Tributes Come from All Directions

The downfall of Xi Country was rather dramatic; no one could have predicted their resistance would crumble because of an ironclad warship.

Even Jiang Lu had not anticipated that someone from Xi Country would actually come to buy the ship left behind by Yan Country, which was simply too absurd.

Following that lead, he discovered Luo Chuan’s plan to escape by sea, and thereafter, Xi Country was directly annihilated.

At that time, the entire Yong’an City was in chaos, every prominent family had hoarded a great deal of gold, silver, and jewels, just waiting to board the ship and depart, when they were caught red-handed.

With ease, he executed the civilians, opened the granaries, and handed out grain, at least ensuring there were no issues with his reputation.

After the destruction of Xi Country, Zhou Country, which had long been in internal turmoil, had also been frightened into consensus, promptly surrendering.

Thus, Jiang Lu became the true Emperor Long, the Emperor with real power and military control. The former Emperor Long, who had abdicated in favor of Luo Chuan, had passed away from illness quite some time ago, and how exactly he died no longer mattered; as long as he was dead, that was enough.

Gu Shanhai also visited Xu Bu’s Emperor’s Mausoleum, but he did not delve too deeply; indeed, the mausoleum had been damaged but had since been restored, seemingly by local nobles. Gu Shanhai did not actually open the mausoleum, presuming that it meant the deceased had really died.

Subsequently, he naturally followed Jiang Lu back to Yong’an City, and after some refurbishment, a ceremony was held to worship the ancestors and announce to the heavens.

After that, there were three years of recuperation. In these years, through the Dynasty Struggle System, Jiang Lu continually made up for the deficits of previous years. With wars raging for so long, it was impossible to say there hadn’t been deficits. The population alone had decreased to about one-tenth of its original size, enough to indicate just how fierce the fighting had been.

However, Jiang Lu had no intention of stopping there. Instead, he continued to expand outward, using the system combined with his policies after three years of recuperation.

The barbarians in all four directions had been vanquished, and Dalong’s territory now occupied their entire continent. As technology and military advancements matured, a new pattern of overseas exploration was being implemented.

Gu Shanhai was also making a fortune, especially with various technologies. As Duke An, he was free to peruse these technologies at will.

Moreover, with continual expansion, his resources kept accumulating, driving his various experiments to advance by leaps and bounds.

Being short of money and being wealthy were two different states, and he even had a multitude of subordinates to assist with his tasks.

"The world changes greatly every day," Gu Shanhai couldn’t help but remark.

"Oh? Have you never thought about enjoying some comforts? It’s said there’s plenty of fun to be had overseas, even some blond-haired, blue-eyed barbarians," Jiang Lu, who was reviewing memorials, looked up and teased.

"I feel like I’m enjoying comforts right now, what’s the need to go out there?" Gu Shanhai, not one for fun and games, preferred quietly becoming stronger as one of his few pleasures.

There were blond-haired, blue-eyed barbarians overseas, whose system was similar, calling themselves Knights. Their development was quite good; too bad they encountered Dalong, which had emerged from a series of events involving transmigrators, people reborn, Demon Dragons, etc. Any weakness, and their people would vanish.

Hence, they were utterly defeated.

"You don’t seem to be enjoying comforts at all; even the Royal Researchers are not as driven as you," Jiang Lu advised Gu Shanhai that at his age, he should drop the research and focus on living a few more years.

"That’s just because they don’t work hard enough. If they did, working twelve hours a day, what can’t they achieve?" Gu Shanhai argued confidently.

Jiang Lu couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time; even with the utmost effort, it was impossible to work for twelve hours straight.

Due to externally plundering resources, the ordinary people within Dalong Country were quite comfortable, with external conflicts deflecting societal tensions and resources being brought in from outside. There had even been situations where people didn’t need to work to have income, but Jiang Lu was gradually adjusting these harmful influences.

He needed a spirited and upward-looking ethos, not one that would continuously rot from the inside out.

"Si’er, pour some tea," Jiang Lu glanced at Gu Shanhai’s teacup, which had gone cold, and called out before continuing, "You’re too energetic, try to relax a bit."

The Crown Prince, Jiang Ming, hurriedly stood up to do the task.

"Don’t bother pouring; I’ll end up with a swollen belly if I drink more," Gu Shanhai waved his hand to indicate not to fuss, then added, "Otherwise, I’ll end up gloomy in middle age like you, right?"

"Speaking of which, hasn’t your system updated yet? It’s been several years," Gu Shanhai changed the subject.

Jiang Lu was indifferent, "Not yet, but it’s not a big deal as long as it works. I can’t draw cards, but all other modules are functional."

Gu Shanhai and Jiang Lu had tried exploiting bugs in the system for almost a year, to no avail, not a single bug emerged, forcing them to give up.

Because of this, Gu Shanhai was quite frustrated; it was his first encounter with such a flawless system, irritatingly free of any glitches.

"By the way, teacher, have you figured out how to pass on this thing?" Jiang Lu asked.

"How would I know? Maybe when you’re near death, let Si’er take you on a journey. It could be a drop from a defeat, but if that’s the case, the old Jiang family wouldn’t be known for inherited familial virtues anymore," Gu Shanhai joked.

Initially, the system had entered Jiang Lu as a blaze of light when he killed Zhou Ding; it was certain to seek another host after death, but how it would choose that host, Gu Shanhai had no idea.